![]() ![]() Immoral and dishonorable thoughts produce doubt, fear and impurity within us. “The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace” (Romans 8:6). 4:7) while we were entertaining admirable thoughts. When we worry or dwell upon unholy things, we lose some of the "peace of God" that had been powerfully “guarding our hearts and minds” (Phil. The “peace of God” is experienced when we trust the Lord in the midst of our daily struggles and meditate upon things that are noble and pure. The thing that fluctuates is the amount of peace we experience hour by hour. “Peace with God" refers to our permanent relationship. Notice the difference between the "peace of God” and “peace with God.” Every believer in Jesus Christ has “peace with God.” “Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (Romans 5:1,2).Ī Christian’s standing with God does not change. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. God guards our mind when we live by faith and engage in wholesome thinking. “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things” (Philippians 4:8). The Apostle Paul wrote this beautiful prescription for peace: What have you been hiding in your heart? God’s Word, or sinful thoughts you would be ashamed to admit to others? I have hidden your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:9,10). I seek you with all my heart do not let me stray from your commands. “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your Word. Scripture clearly spells out the wages of sin, as well as the source of holy living. ![]() ![]() Moody penned this keen insight: “Sin will keep you from the Bible, and the Bible will keep you from sin." Jesus said, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).ĭavid declared, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14). And D.L. “All Scripture is God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16).ĭo you read the Bible as often as you consume the human interest stories of the day? Tantalizing trivia is like cotton candy for the soul. When a person meditates upon Scripture, he is filling his mind with the holy and undefiled thoughts of God. The Apostle Peter wrote his epistles to believers in order “to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.” Thankfully, the Word of God is pure and life-changing. If I refuse to do so, I will never get any better. James Allen wrote, “Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves.” The way to improve myself is to improve my thinking. What have your words been communicating to others about your thought life? How so? Jesus said, “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). People often unknowingly reveal their thoughts to others. Therefore, protecting our heart is of utmost importance. “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:23). It has aptly been noted: “The battleground is the mind.” And I suspect you have discovered this reality to be true in your own life. “For as a man thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). So how have things been going lately in your thought life? Have you been filling your heart and mind with wholesome thoughts, or with needless trivia? Worry and ungodly thoughts are an ever-present danger that chip away at our peace of mind and produce spiritual and mental unrest. Sadly, this habitual practice does little to feed a person’s soul. Multitudes of people these days spend far more time scanning social media than reading the Bible. An overhead view of a man reading scripture in a dark room, window light illuminating the pages from above and behind him.
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